Centre working on tech upgrade plan for industry

Government is working on a plan to incentivise Indian industry for upgradation of technology to keep it competitive globally, a senior official said today.
"The government is planning to give incentives to the industry for upgradation of technology to match the global standards and stay in competition," Sudhanshu Pandey, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, said at a CII event here.
"This is part of our efforts to bring greater awareness among industry members and other stakeholders about the importance of standards in the changing scenario of global trade," Pandey said.
According to him, the government has identified around 400 products and is working on building mandatory standards for the items.

Pandey said since the exercise entails inter-ministerial collaboration, the process is time-consuming and requires approval of the cabinet.
The mandatory standards for the identified products are expected to be ready by 2016-17, he said.
"This mandatory standardisation of products that match international norms is necessary for creation of overseas market access for Indian exporters," he said.
He added that it would also protect the Indian market from becoming a dumping ground for substandard products, including chemicals and food items.